


Gunslinger

by egreywalker



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate Universe - Western, F/F, Romance, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-08
Updated: 2017-09-15
Packaged: 2018-10-16 07:34:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10566606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/egreywalker/pseuds/egreywalker
Summary: The Luthors own the fledgling town of (the pretentiously named) National City, but the Kents have rallied the other farmers to resist their takeover.  Lena travels to her new home from her studies overseas and a Marshal and her deputy arrive to restore peace.or:  this is my first attempt at a fic, so...  i apologize in advance.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, so as this is a first attempt, I'm not sure how many chapters it will be, and I don't really have an update schedule because it was a crazy idea I had and just decided to put it down (the first chapter anyway). So depending on feedback, we'll see how it goes from here.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uhm, characters and stuff...

* * *

 

                Lena felt like she was dying.  The cloying, sweltering heat in the back of the coach, made so much worse by being crammed between the sweating overweight man to her left and the stuffy-looking older woman to her right, made it seem like she was melting right out of her thin cotton dress.  Unable to reach around the sleeping man, she quietly asked the woman if she could open the window, only to receive a severe scowl and a vehement “No!” in response.

                It almost came as a relief when the scruffy-looking band of outlaws managed to stop the coach and force everyone out into the barren hellscape that was western Nevada.  Two of them held the passengers and driver at gunpoint while the other four began tossing luggage from the roof and rummaging through the trunks and bags looking for valuables.  Lena looked around for the man who was riding next to the driver, but couldn’t see him anywhere.  One of the men in front of her yelled at her in a harsh voice to keep her eyes front.

                She found this hard to do, however, when a loud scuffle erupted behind her between the looters and all four of the passengers flinched and fell to the ground as a deafening shotgun blast rang out across the plains.  The rest of the men began laughing and shoving one another as the body of their leader fell beside the captives.  Lena felt like she was going to be sick and quickly covered her mouth with her hands to avoid making any sound.

                The rough-looking men soon finished looting everything they could find and started to gather around the small group of frightened men and women.  Without warning, two of the bandits aimed their weapons and fired, the driver and the other man she never knew crying out before falling to the ground.  They didn’t move again and Lena felt her eyes and throat begin to burn, but she raised her chin and refused to allow these men to see her break.

                The stuffy looking woman beside her put on a commanding tone while she demanded to be set free, but the quiver in her voice betrayed her fear.  Laughing cruelly, one of the men stepped in front of her, reaching out to grab her left arm.  Everyone startled as he let out a loud cry before folding to the ground, clutching his stomach and moaning in pain, his hand clasped about the hilt of a long knife buried to the hilt in his gut.  The woman didn’t wait to see what they would do, grabbing Lena by the hand and pulling her into a run around the back of the coach.

                They’d only gone a dozen yards before shots rang out behind them and the older woman cried out and fell to sprawl headfirst in the dirt, two deep red stains spreading on the back of her dress.  Lena gave a strangled cry and kept running until several more shots shattered the dirt at her feet.  She stumbled to a halt, her breathing ragged, and whirled to face the men running toward her.

                The men were upon her sooner than she expected, grabbing her arms and pulling her back toward the ruined coach.  She started to struggle, but one of the men hit her on the side of the head with his gun, causing her to stagger and cry out in pain, nearly falling before they dragged her roughly back to her feet, putting their guns away to more easily maneuver her back to their waiting partners.  Meanwhile, the two men that had stayed behind were busy cutting the horses loose and didn’t see the rider approaching them from behind.  Two more shots rang out, scattering the newly-freed horses, and the men that had cut them loose tumbled to the dirt and were trampled by the miniature stampede.

                The men dragging Lena stopped in confusion as the horses scattered, unsure what direction the threat came from.  Their hesitation proved their undoing as a perfectly white horse came galloping around the back of the coach, its rider leaning low over the saddle.  Lena was startled to see that the rider wasn’t using reins, instead holding a six-gun in each hand and guiding the horse with his legs.  The horse thundered straight toward them and the men holding Lena’s arms shoved her to the side as they struggled to pull their own guns from their holsters.  Smoke and dust obscured the scene as the white horse bore its rider directly between the two outlaws, shots and curses fouling the air before silence settled as slowly as the dust in the still evening air.

 

* * *

 

                Lena jerks awake with a low cry, almost a whimper.  She slowly sits up in her sweat-soaked bed, the covers tangled around her legs and her breathing heavy and harsh in the still night air, her heart pounding so hard she fears it might leap from her chest.  She scrambles to kick the blanket from her legs before staggering to the wooden bucket beside her bed and heaving the remains of her supper into its stained depths.  After a moment she rests her back against the side of the bed, pushing her sweat-damp hair from her face before laying her head on the mattress and closing her eyes.

                She remembers the clearest blue she’s ever seen and a small smile tugs at the corner of her mouth.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure how many people will see this. If you want me to keep going, let me know in the comments


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More flashbacks

* * *

 

           “Lena!” Lillian’s voice hits her like a whip.  “If you don’t stop picking at that scab you’ll wind up with a scar!  How do you ever expect to find a husband if you disfigure yourself?”

            Lena quickly hides her hand in her lap, staring down at her plate as she mumbles her apologies.  Her mother takes no notice, turning to berate one of the servants for forgetting to bring out the fresh butter.  Lena sighs and goes back to moving the food around on her plate as she once again slips back into her memories of the past weeks.

 

* * *

 

            Coughing in the settling dust, Lena pushed herself slowly to her knees, looking around in the fading light.  She saw the white horse, riderless, wander slowly to a nearby clump of grass and start grazing.  The bodies of the last two outlaws lay bleeding in the dirt, and Lena jerked back with a gasp as a leather-gloved hand reached down into her field of view to help her to her feet.

            She looked up, straight into the smiling face of the most beautiful girl she’d ever seen.  Clear blue eyes, wheat blonde hair under a dusty white hat, lips twitching still in a smile that’s quickly becoming overtaken by a look of concern, a crinkle forming between those captivating eyes.

            The stranger slowly knelt down in front of her, and Lena blinked once, then again, her wits slow to return.  The girl reached out, slowly this time, taking her hands and helping her to her feet.  Once she was standing, her breathing started to come easier and she reached up to push her hair back behind her ear, only to wince as her hand brushed the bleeding wound on the side of her face.  She quickly bit back a curse as she pulled away to find her fingers covered with blood.  She swayed, stumbling, and only the blonde girl’s hands on her arms stopped Lena from falling to the ground again.

            Lena looked up slowly, trying to steady her breathing and her rapidly beating heart when she noticed the stranger’s lips moving.  Blinking again, realizing she must be going into shock and, trying desperately not to faint, focused harder than she ever had before on what her savior was saying.  Faintly, as if she were underwater, she began to make out the words.

            “…you hurt anywhere else?  Oh gosh, that cut on your face looks so bad!  No, that’s not what I meant!  It, uh…  it looks painful, but I’m sure my sister can fix it, she can fix anything.  Well, not anything, but most things.  Can I get you anything?  Water!  Are you thirsty?  I have my canteen…  Oh no, I forgot, I left it by the stream…”

            Lena’s lips twitched, then she grinned and began to laugh helplessly as the girl in front of her stumbled through her words without seeming to breathe at all.  Giggling and gasping, her hands clutching at the girl’s sleeves to keep herself upright, she laughed herself nearly sick before she crumpled to the ground, great sobs wracking her body as the tears streaked down her face, leaving tracks through the dirt and blood.

            Lena didn’t know how long she cried, or when she finally gave in to the blackness pulling incessantly at her consciousness, she only knew that when she clawed her way back toward the light, that light was wrapped around her, strong arms holding her close, soft fingers combing through her hair, a quiet voice murmuring soothing sounds into her ear.  She lay with her eyes closed, listening, and eventually realized it was a song, one she’d never heard before but one she found she wanted very badly to learn.

            Blinking her eyes open, she saw that the sun had barely moved in the sky and quickly worked out that she must not have been unconscious long.  However, it was humiliating that she had passed out at all.  After all, as her father and mother were so fond of saying, “Luthors never show weakness, and you are a Luthor now.”

            She let out a groan as she tried to sit up, and felt the girl’s arms brace against her back, helping and at the same time making sure she didn’t sit up too fast.  Once she knew that she wouldn’t pass out again, Lena turned to face her rescuer, staring again for a few moments before she found her voice.

            “Thank you for saving me,” she began, just as she spotted the dull silver star pinned to the girl’s jacket.  Surprised, she looked up at the girl in front of her, studying her intently.  Surely she was too young to be in a position of such authority.  “Marshal?” she raised an eyebrow.

            The girl laughed, a bright peal of sound like a gust of cool wind in the desert.  “Oh, no!  I’m just a deputy.  My sister is the marshal.  I should bring you to see her so she can fix your face.  Not that there’s anything wrong with your face!”  The sudden blush that consumed the pretty blonde was like a sunset, and Lena felt her heart stop just for a moment.

            “I’m Lena, by the way,” she introduced herself, holding out her hand.

            “Oh!  Kara!  Kara Danvers!”  She took Lena’s hand and shook it firmly, and Lena could feel the strength in Kara's hand.

            “It’s very nice to meet you, Kara.  Thank you again for saving my life.  I really expected this to be my last day for a minute there.”

            Kara looked stricken at the thought of what could have happened if she hadn’t shown up when she did, and her grip on Lena’s hand tightened almost painfully, surprising them both, as they’d quite forgotten their hands were still joined.  Kara pulled her hand slowly from Lena’s, fingers sliding along each other, neither of them seeming to want to let go.

            Lena blinked down at their hands as Kara shook herself out of whatever had gripped her, clearly trying to focus on what she needed to do next.  She stood and let out a piercing whistle and Lena saw the white horse’s head snap up, its ears perking as it trotted toward them.  As it slowed to a stop before her, Kara wrapped her arms around its neck and seemed to be talking to it softly.  Lena slowly climbed to her feet, checking to make sure she was steady.

            Looking around at the carnage of the attack, Lena felt tears well in her eyes again but firmly stamped down the urge to cry as she walked slowly toward the coach and began gathering her scattered belongings.  After shoving her clothes back into her trunk, she forced herself to search the bodies of the dead men to collect the rest of her things, small valuables that she’d had with her since she was sent away to school.

            After finding and storing all of her possessions, she struggled to unbuckle the gun belt of one of the outlaws.  She was startled once again as she felt Kara’s hands on her own, helping her with her task.  Once they got the belt off, Kara merely looked at her for a moment before helping to settle it about her hips, making sure it hung correctly.  Picking up the fallen gun to match the empty holster, Kara held it out silently to her, and Lena took it and placed it at her hip.  It took her two tries, but she managed to slide it home, feeling relief at the comforting weight.

            Kara looked at her again, and her tone didn’t hold much confidence when she asked “You know how to use that, right?”

            Lena blushed slightly, but she raised her chin and spoke with what she hoped was confidence.  “Not yet, but I learn fast.  If I have a good teacher.”  The look she leveled at Kara was enough to have a nervous blush rising on the blonde girl’s cheeks again.  At this rate, Lena thought, Kara might just pass out next.

 

* * *

 

            Kara managed to round up a couple of the outlaw’s horses, the rest having scattered too far to recover easily, and Lena thought they might be happier where they were than pulling a stagecoach.  It had been a while since she’d ridden a horse, but Lena didn’t think she’d have much trouble.  However, when she went to mount, she found this type of saddle quite different than what she was used to, and her dress caught, a horrible ripping sound causing Kara to clap her hand to her mouth to smother her giggles.  She was less than successful, and Lena felt her face burn as she dropped back to the ground, mortified and clutching the back of her dress together.

            Gulping and with twitching lips, Kara dismounted and rushed to help, digging through Lena’s luggage.  She let out an exasperated noise as she found dress after dress, full skirts and petticoats, corsets even, but nothing practical.  She looked up at Lena, assessing her height and figure with half-closed eyes before crossing to her horse and digging in one of her saddlebags, pulling out a pair of worn but sturdy trousers made of soft buckskin.  She handed them to Lena and motioned with her head toward the coach, urging her to quickly change.  While Lena shut herself in the coach, Kara strapped Lena’s trunk and bags to the backs of two of the spare horses.  She stood looking at the fallen before collecting spare weapons and ammunition and dragging the body of the older woman back to lie with the others.  Then she went back for the other two that she’d felled in her mad rush to save the brunette currently thrashing about in the coach.

            When Lena stepped out again, tugging at the top of her dress to settle it in place, she found Kara standing with her head bowed over the dead.  Lena stood next to her, looking down at the woman that had tried to save her and paid the ultimate price. 

            “I didn’t even know her name.”  Her voice was a harsh whisper as she twisted her fingers together.

            Kara reached out and took Lena’s left hand in her right, pulling her toward the horses.  “Come with me, we need to get back to my sister and let her know about this.  And she needs to look at your wound, I don’t like how much it’s bleeding.”  As Lena started to clamber onto her horse, Kara took a closer look at her new outfit.  “Lena,” she asked, “what did you do?”

            Lena looked down at herself and then back up at Kara.  “The dress was ruined, so I just tore it off.  I don’t really have any shirts, so I figured I could just wear it like this.  Is that ok?”

            Kara gave a small smile and a shrug.  “I guess it’ll work for now.”

            Lena found mounting much easier this time, the only problem she had being the length of the trouser legs.  Kara quickly rolled the cuffs up, frowning at Lena’s shoes.  She looked up as she finished and tilted her head to the side.  “You weren’t really prepared for this, were you?  Not, I mean, being attacked and all that, more, coming out west, traveling, and that…” her voice trailed off as she seemed to realize she didn’t know exactly what she wanted to say.

            Lena smiled down at her confusion.  “No, I suppose I wasn’t prepared.  I’ve never traveled on my own like this.  I’ve always had someone with me, a chaperone or companion of some kind.  This time there was no one, so I made due.  I guess I didn’t really know what to expect, and everyone I asked had a different opinion.  So I made up my own mind and went with what I knew.  I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that I didn’t really know what I was doing.”

            Kara coughed and looked away from the intensity in Lena’s eyes, took two running steps and leapt onto her white horse, leaving Lena gaping at her.  Kara looked back and shot her a grin and a wink before taking the reins of two of the spare horses, gesturing for Lena to take the remaining lead before she spoke.

            “Well, we’ll have to stop off at the next way station and get you some proper gear.  Not to mention your own pair of trousers.  Not that I mind you in mine…” she stammered to a stop, face on fire, as Lena raised a brow at her, eyes the color of perfect emeralds burning into her own as a smirk formed on her lips.

            Lena gave a small snort at her new friend’s discomfort before taking the lead of the last spare horse and asking “Well?  Where exactly are we headed?”

            Kara shook herself and cleared her throat.  “Ah, yes, right.  We should stop at the stream and get the water I was supposed to bring back with me.”  She glanced up at the setting sun and groaned.  “Oh, Alex is going to kill me, I should have been back hours ago!”  She gave Lena a pleading look.  “I hope you know how to ride, we’ll have to hurry if we want to get back before dark.”

            “I have had lessons, although it’s been a while.  And the saddle is different than what I’m used to, hence the dress.”  She waved her hand back toward the coach.  “Well, lead on then.  I wouldn’t want you to get in trouble.”

            Kara wasted no time, but turned and urged her horse forward at a canter, looking back to make sure Lena was keeping up.

            After an uncomfortable moment with the unfamiliar saddle, Lena found herself easing back into the rhythm of riding, and quickly caught up with Kara, who seemed completely at home on horseback.  Kara flashed her a bright smile, and Lena found herself returning it without even thinking.

            She turned to look ahead and the cooling evening air whipping her hair back to stream behind her, the powerful horse beneath her, the smiling blonde girl at her side, all of it crashed together and took the air from her body.  Taking a great, gasping breath, Lena let out a glad cry, closing her eyes and feeling more alive in that moment than she has in her whole life.

 

* * *

 

            “Lena!  LENA LUTHOR!!”  Lillian’s voice rips her violently out of her reverie and she gasps and drops her fork to her plate, the harsh crash of silver on china echoing through the dining room.  “I swear, you’re going to drive me to an early grave, girl!  Did we waste all that money sending you to school so you could learn nothing?  There you sit, staring off at nothing, wasting this excellent food your father struggles to provide for you,” her mother’s voice drones on and on, but Lena lets it fade to the background, having heard all of this before.

            She pays enough attention to give monosyllabic answers and nods in the right places, but her thoughts are elsewhere, on a laughing girl with sunshine hair and eyes the color of a prairie sky.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So for now, I'm sticking with Lena's POV, probably just until the story catches up to the present. To make it easier to tell when is when, I'm switching tenses between past and present. After the flashbacks are done, if I need to do a time jump again, I'll probably put some kind of thing in there telling when it takes place.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> summaries are weird, no spoilers for you

* * *

 

            Lena finds herself humming as she walks along the row of shops in the middle of town and she stops suddenly, unable to place where exactly she’s heard the tune that wormed its way into her head.  She steps to the side of the wooden walkway, leaning against the wall of the general store, closing her eyes and trying to remember.  After a moment, it comes to her, and a soft smile blossoms on her lips.

 

* * *

 

            Opening her eyes, Lena was surprised to find them riding back along the trail toward the east.  She voiced that surprise, and was puzzled to receive no reply, until she realized Kara couldn’t hear her over the sound of the horses and the wind.  She raised her voice and asked again, “Kara, why are we going back?”

            This time, Kara heard her and explained.  “I was at the stream getting water when I heard the coach go past, followed shortly after by a group of horses.  The stream is at the bottom of a wash, and there are trees, so I couldn’t see who they were.  So I climbed up and saw six men riding after the coach, urging their horses faster in order to catch up, so I whistled for Cloud and rode after them,” she reached down and patted her horse on the neck.

            “You named your horse Cloud?” Lena grinned at her.

            Kara groaned and gave her an annoyed look.  “Not you, too!  Alex said it was weird, but I like it, and Cloud likes it too, don’t you, girl?”  She patted her horse again and Cloud gave a snort and tossed her head.

            Lena laughed and shook her head as Kara stuck her tongue out at her.

 

* * *

 

            The light was fading fast when they slid down the side of a ravine and splashed across the small stream at the bottom, letting the horses drink while Kara collected the water she’d left behind.  After quenching their own thirst, they were soon on their way again, this time heading south, racing now against the gathering darkness.  They lost.

            The great wash of the Milky Way spread above them as they followed the winking campfire nestled among a small stand of trees. They rode right up to the edge of the firelight and Kara was already stumbling through her apology as she dismounted, when a tall girl with dark hair and darker clothes leapt up and smothered her in a tight hug.  Lena could hear Kara’s muffled apology even though her face was pressed against her sister’s shoulder, and she swung down from her horse as quietly as she could, hoping not to interrupt and call attention to herself.

            As soon as her foot hit the ground she knew it was not to be.  Her muscles, unused to riding, spasmed badly and she cried out and fell to the ground as her leg refused to hold her.  Kara was at her side faster than she thought anyone should be able to move, massaging her legs and stammering out yet another apology.  Her sister’s cool voice made them both freeze and look up at her as she stood over them, eyebrow raised.

            “Am I interrupting something?  If mom knew this is what you’d get up to, I’m not sure she would have let you come with me, little sister.”

            Lena couldn’t really tell in the shifting firelight, but she though all of Kara’s blood must have rushed her face at her sister’s comment and she quickly snatched her hands away from Lena’s thigh where she had just been desperately attempting to ease her tightened muscles.  Lena gave a small chuckle and held her hand up for a greeting.

            “Hello.  You must be Alex.  I’m Lena.  Your sister saved my life.”

            Alex took Lena’s hand and gripped it firmly, pulling her slowly to her feet, and Lena could feel the strength in her, making her wonder just exactly how these two girls managed to be so strong, yet smaller than most of the men she knew.  She made a mental note to ask Kara about it later, focusing on the girl talking to her now.

            “Marshal Alexandra Danvers.  I’m glad my deputy was able to assist you, I just wish she would follow protocol and get backup before she does foolish things like put herself in danger.”  This last with a glare at her sister, who hung her head and kicked at the dirt with one foot, a mumbled “I said sorry,” the only reply.

            Leaning on her horse’s saddle and flexing one leg at a time, she quickly came to her new friend’s defense.  “I would be dead or worse if Kara hadn’t shown up when she did.  I’m glad she didn’t get hurt, but I can’t say I’m sorry she rushed to help me.”  She smiled at Kara, who looked up at her words with wide eyes.

            Kara took a breath and opened her mouth to say something, but Alex cut her off.  “Oh, this is going to be fun, I can already see it.  Now there are two of them!”  She looked dramatically at the night sky, a plaintive whine in her voice.  “Why do you hate me?”

            Kara snickered and helped Lena hobble to the fire, easing her down on a log Alex had dragged over to use as a seat, then returning to help her sister unload the horses.  They soon had them tied to a line stretched between two trees, Kara telling her sister about the incident with the outlaws and the stagecoach that she’d managed to interrupt while going to gather water.

            Alex sighed and sat beside the fire, passing her sister a plate of food she had set aside for her.  Kara quickly scooped up another plate and divided her food to share with Lena who thanked her before they both began eating ravenously.  Alex stared into the fire, trying to work out all they would need to do the next day to take care of the remains of the coach and its passengers.  She sighed, looking up at her sister sitting beside a slim girl with long dark hair and piercing green eyes, their sides almost touching as they devoured their meal.  She smiled in spite of herself, glad that her sister had managed to save at least one innocent life.

            After they’d finished eating, Alex cleaned Lena’s wound and found only a shallow cut that she managed to wrap awkwardly with a clean cloth after smearing a sharp-smelling ointment from a small clay jar over it.  The pain was intense for a moment, then quickly faded as the salve numbed the side of her face.  Kara spread a spare bedroll beside the fire for her, and Lena lay down, staring at the flames.  Kara spread her own bedroll near her, laying so their heads were facing each other on the same side of the fire.  She looked at Lena for a while before pulling her blanket up to her chin, closing her eyes and falling asleep.  Lena lay awake much longer, watching the fire burn down, trying not to think about everything that had happened that day.

            She woke once during the night, gasping and trying not to make any noise, one hand pressed to her mouth to stop her sobs from waking the other sleeping girls.  She’d just managed to get her breathing under control when she felt soft fingers against her own, and she gripped Kara’s hand as she wiped the tears from her eyes and settled back to try and sleep.  To her surprise, she didn’t have any more nightmares.

 

* * *

 

            A cool mist lay among the trees the next morning, and Lena groaned as Alex nudged her and Kara awake with the toe of her boot.  She yawned and opened her eyes, her gaze immediately drawn to the blond girl lying near her, their hands still stretched toward each other in sleep, and she smiled and sat up, stretching her sore body and climbing to her feet to stagger off into the trees to relieve herself.  She passed Kara on her way back to the campsite and gave her a small smile that was quickly returned.  She was trying to roll up her bedding while Alex watched her over the fire where she was making breakfast when Kara returned and came immediately to help her with the unfamiliar task.  They worked together on Lena’s things before moving over to Kara’s where Lena helped her as thanks and to practice her new skill.

            After stowing their bedrolls on their saddles, the girls returned to the fire to eat, once more sitting close to each other on the log, not really noticing that their bodies were almost touching.  Alex watched them again as she ate, a concerned look on her face.

            After cleaning up from breakfast they quickly broke camp, kicking dirt over the fire, saddling the horses and loading Lena’s luggage before mounting and riding back to the remains of the stagecoach.  It took considerably less time to get there, now that Kara had been there and back.  She led the way, followed by Lena and then Alex bringing up the rear, her head slowly moving from side to side as she scanned for threats, her eyes never staying on one point for too long, yet missing nothing.  This time, each of them led a single spare horse, and they got to the site of the tragic attack before the sun was more than a few finger-widths above the horizon.  Lena had to look away from the remains, the bodies having been feasted on by the local wildlife during the night.

            She busied herself with trying to gather up the other horses that had clumped together around a large patch of grass a few hundred yards north of the track.  By the time she’d managed to get close enough to gather up their trailing leads and begin leading them back, Alex and Kara had dug shallow graves and buried the remains of the bandits and their victims.  They looked up in surprise as Lena led the last six horses up to join the ones waiting by the coach.  All three of them collected the remaining luggage and personal effects of the passengers and strapped them to the spare horses before mounting once more and heading west.

            They stayed on the faint track the coach had been following for almost half the day before Alex led them on a more southerly route.  There was no trail that Lena could see, but Alex rode confidently, constantly scanning the land around them in search of danger, and Kara seemed to trust her sister implicitly, simply riding where Alex led, and so Lena did the same.  Just as dusk started to steal the light, they reached a small cabin by a creek with a single outbuilding that Lena thought might be a stable attached to a rough corral.  She turned out to be right and praised herself for her observation.

            Unloading the horses took some time, but once they had all the bags and Lena’s trunk down and the horses unsaddled, they set them loose into the enclosure, Kara measuring out some feed into a nearby trough before all three of them carried everything inside.  It took more than one trip, and as Lena struggled with her trunk, she resolved to pick only a few things to bring with her and leave the rest.  Kara returned to help her as Alex started a fire inside, and the three of them quickly settled into the routine of making and eating supper, Lena doing what she could to help, though she knew nothing of preparing her own food.  Alex saw that she was willing to learn and quietly showed her how she went about preparing their simple fare, and Lena found she quite liked cooking, deciding that she would learn all she could from these two remarkable women before they had to part ways.

            As they sat before the fireplace, the dishes washed and put away, Lena found herself leaning against Kara’s side, eyes half closed, her head resting on her new friend’s shoulder as they all stared into the fire.  She could hear Kara singing quietly to herself, the same song she’d sung to Lena the day before, and Lena closed her eyes and simply listened, letting the words sink into her and bear her up, lending her strength, and she knew that whatever the near future may bring, she would meet it head-on with her new companions by her side.

            She didn’t realize she’d fallen asleep as she woke to find Kara laying her down gently on one of the narrow beds set along the wall.  She kept her eyes mostly closed as the blanket was pulled up and tucked around her, fading in and out of consciousness as she felt Kara brush her hair back from her face and lay a soft kiss on the bandage covering her cut.  She reached up and took the gentle hand that was resting on her cheek and softly laid her own kiss on Kara’s fingertips before sighing and letting the world fade to black.

 

* * *

 

            Lena was the last one to wake the next morning and she wondered why the others hadn’t gotten her up.  She had a small moment of panic at the thought that they’d left her, but just as she was about to jump up and run outside, Alex came back in carrying a heavy bucket full of water, and Lena jumped up for a completely different reason and rushed to help her, hating herself that she thought they would abandon her like that.  After helping Alex prepare breakfast, she went out to find Kara checking over the horses and called her in to eat.  The blonde looked over and smiled, jogging to the fence and easily leaping up to vault over it, leaving Lena staring at her again in disbelief, eyes wide and mouth open slightly.  Kara grinned widely at her look and grabbed her hand as she went past, pulling her back inside to eat.

            Alex decided they needed to take a day or two to restock before they moved on, debating with Kara whether or not they should try and bring all the horses with them.  Kara was adamantly in favor of it, arguing that leaving them behind would just be sending them to their death by predators or starvation if they kept them locked up.  Alex eventually conceded her point, but put both the other girls on horse detail, making sure they knew they had to gather enough to keep them fed for at least three days if they couldn’t find anything for them to forage along the way.  Kara agreed immediately and dragged Lena outside once more, eager to get started.

            The two girls spent most of the morning gathering wild grain and dry grasses to keep the horses fed, working together easily once Kara showed her what to do, her smile like the rising sun as Lena proved herself to be a quick study.  Neither of them spoke of the night before, but stole glances at each other while they worked, quickly looking away when their eyes happened to meet.  When they stopped for lunch, Kara guessed they had enough to feed the horses for at least two days.  They were both aching and dripping with sweat as they dropped their bundles outside the cabin, and Kara headed to the creek, hopping on one foot as she tugged at a boot.  Lena trailed after, wondering what she was doing.

            She didn’t have long before she found out.  As soon as the tall blonde reached the water's edge she stripped off her sweat-soaked shirt and fell headfirst into a deep pool under a spreading willow tree.  Lena felt her face grow hot at the sight of Kara’s naked back, and was glad she’d managed to get herself under control by the time her friend popped back to the surface, gasping and pushing her streaming hair back from her face.

She looked at Lena, head cocked to one side and asked, “Why are you just standing there?  Come on, I know you’re just as hot as I was, maybe more since you’re not used to it.”  She wriggled around for a minute and then flung her wet trousers onto the bank of the creek next to her shirt.  Lena swallowed and closed her eyes, causing Kara to swim closer and look at her with concern.  “Do you not know how to swim?” she asked gently.

            Lena shook her head slightly and knew she must look so helpless next to these amazingly skilled sisters who could do so much.  And what was she worth compared to them?  She couldn’t even feed herself, couldn’t protect herself, couldn’t do anything.  She felt her eyes sting with tears and closed them tighter, determined not to show any more weakness in front of the bravest girl she’d ever known.  She gasped loudly when she felt cool, wet hands on her cheeks, soothing her burning face as Kara pressed their foreheads together.

            “Lena, look at me,” Kara commanded, and Lena opened her eyes, gazing into what she imagined a perfect summer sky would look like if it could be captured and stored in a bottle.  Kara’s look was intense, and Lena swallowed again as she listened.

            “Lena, I will never judge you for a skill you never had a chance to learn.  Not everyone can know everything, and anything I can show you I swear that I will, I don’t care how long it takes you to learn.  Please believe me, I won’t let you wander lost when I can help you be everything you want to become."

            Drawing in a shaking breath, Lena closed her eyes again and breathed a soft “Thank you,” before wrapping her arms around Kara and hugging her tightly.  They stood that way for almost a minute before Lena realized she was holding a naked and dripping Kara in her arms.  She let out a guilty and highly undignified squawk and stumbled backward, tripping over her own feet and falling into the grass by the side of the stream.  She lay there with her eyes closed, groaning, hands covering her face as she heard Kara’s giggles followed by a splash.

            “I’m just going to lie here and die, you enjoy your swim,” she spoke into her palms.  Not hearing a reply, she lowered her hands and tilted her head up to look for Kara, but didn’t see her in the water.  Sitting up, she looked around, then climbed to her feet and made her way over to the creek, peering behind the tree to see if her friend was hiding there.  Not finding her, she turned to head back, thinking maybe she should find Alex.  As soon as she turned around, however, Kara erupted from the water and wrapped her arms around Lena’s middle, dragging her screaming to her doom.

            Struggling to find her footing on the rocky bottom, she staggered to her feet, spitting water and swiping angrily at the hair covering her eyes.  She glared around and spotted Kara clutching desperately to a tree root, unable to stand or even breathe as she laughed herself sick.  Lena was less than amused, and her voice almost echoed, even though there was nothing for it to bounce off of.

            “ _KARA!!_   Why would you _DO_ that?!  I could have _DIED!_ ” she screamed, which sent Kara into even greater paroxysms of laughter, causing her to lose her grip on the root and fall into the water.  She dragged herself up onto the bank, coughing and gagging as she tried to empty her lungs while still laughing hysterically.  Lena tried to stomp out of the creek but kept slipping and wound up dragging herself up by grabbing handfuls of grass, finally crawling up to sit, dripping, on the bank.  “I hate you so much,” she whispered, watching Kara struggle to breathe and laugh, tears streaming from her eyes as she lay face-down in the grass.

            After a moment she managed to speak.  “I’m s-sorry L-Lena.  I didn’t mean to s-scare you, but the w-water wasn’t deep and you l-looked so s-sad,” she coughed out.  Lena huffed and crossed her arms, glaring down at the water sparkling in the early afternoon sun.  She didn’t move when Kara wriggled closer and tried to wrap her arms around her, giving her a sad look, eyes wide, lower lip trembling.  She swallowed and decided it was completely unfair for that look to even exist, and for Kara to know about it.  Sighing, she let Kara give her a hug, then helped her to sit up, both of them pulling each other to their feet.  Kara didn’t see the evil grin on Lena’s face before she shoved her as hard as she could back into the creek, the blonde girl letting out her own shriek as she disappeared beneath the water, and Lena let out a sinister chuckle as she bobbed back up, pushing her hair back and glaring up at the smirking girl.

            Pulling off her wet clothes, looking everywhere but at the blonde girl treading water in the deepest part of the eddy, Lena made her way carefully into the pool, clinging tightly to one of the roots of the willow tree that extended into the water.  She startled slightly as she felt a fish brush her leg, but Kara was there to help her, and they were soon happily splashing around.  They didn’t realize how much time had passed when a dry voice brought them back to the world.

            “I should have known I’d find you here.  I swear, Kara, if there’s a way to avoid work, trust you to find it.  Are you at least going to clean these clothes while you’re in there?” Alex asked, nudging the two piles of clothes with her foot.

            Kara just scoffed at her sister and put on a mocking tone as she said, “Ooh look at me, my name’s Alex and I’m so stuffy I can’t have fun ever,” while pulling a face.  Lena quickly hid behind her, giggling, as Alex practically ripped off her clothes and launched herself at her sister who tried to dodge with a squeal.  She was unsuccessful and both of them were dragged under by Alex’s flying tackle.  They all came up laughing and spitting water and spent the rest of the day relaxing while trying to teach Lena how to survive in the wilderness.  She learned how to wash clothes, search for wild plants that were safe to eat and finally how to use the pistol she’d taken from her attackers.  To all of their great surprise, she was an excellent marksman, even beating Kara in a contest to see who could hit more rocks sitting on a rotten log.

            They spent another quiet night in the cabin, turning in early so they could get an early start in the morning.  Lena almost admitted to herself that she missed Kara tucking her in that night.

 

* * *

 

            Brushing her fingers over the fading scab on her face, Lena makes her way to visit the tailor in the next shop over, pausing as she enters to let her eyes adjust to the relative dimness inside after the bright summer sun outside.  Smiling at the woman behind the counter, she pulls out the list she’d written earlier and begins to explain what she needs made and the woman quickly invites her around to the back to take her measurements, smiling and asking about different fabrics and materials.

 

* * *

 

 

_if anyone wants to know the song kara's singing, it's[this](https://soundcloud.com/malukah/reignite-masseffecttribute-by?in=malukah/sets/covers).  i had to link it here because it wouldn't let me put it in the notes_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so are people enjoying this? i hope so. anyway, these seem to be getting longer, so i hope that's a good thing. let me know. uhm... yeah i guess that's it. comments are welcome, feedback is good. also any constructive criticism is helpful. and if you find mistakes, let me know. i try to edit as best i can, but i'm sure i'll miss things.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lots of happening and some time skips but i think it speaks for itself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok, this one got a bit disturbing near the middle(?), so this is a warning if you need to skip that part, it has to do with nightmares and stuff, some of it's gross.

 

* * *

 

            Leaving the tailor, Lena blinks in the afternoon sunlight, brushing her hair back and placing her new white hat firmly on her head while settling her gun more firmly on her hip as she crosses the street and walks slowly toward the blacksmith, every step further from home making her feel lighter.  She’s practically skipping by the time she reaches her destination and pulls the door open to receive a face full of foul black smoke.  Gagging and pulling her blue bandanna up to cover her nose and mouth, she steps slowly into the darkened smithy.

 

* * *

 

            Time seemed to fly by as they traveled west for a few more days before Alex turned them south to join up with a proper river.  Along this waterway Lena learned to fish and about all the myriad plants and wildlife that gathered at a source of fresh water.  Alex taught her to use a rifle and how to track and hunt, although she never did like shooting defenseless animals.  Fishing was one thing, but she found rabbits too adorable to think of them as dinner.

            From Kara she learned to ride fearlessly, to become attuned to her body in ways she’d never even imagined were possible.  She found herself getting stronger, able to spend all day in the saddle without as much as a twinge.  She also noticed she was losing the softness she’d acquired in her years at school, slimming down to planed muscle as her diet and exercise changed, and she reveled in it, marveling at the change in herself, not just physically but mentally.  She no longer saw herself as useless, as her skills increased, so too did her confidence.

            She found her ability to react to a crisis equally changed for the better.

            One day, about a week after they’d set out, they stumbled upon a wounded bear hiding in a group of boulders when they were looking for a place to camp.  Alex’s horse panicked and whirled, throwing the slim older girl against a large rock where she lay stunned.  The roaring bear charged, but Kara rode Cloud straight at it, yelling as loudly as she could, and the bear backed off in confusion as the brave white mare reared and screamed her own challenge.

            Lena, riding at the back of the line, saw Alex get thrown and instead of freezing up or going into hysterics, she calmly pulled the rifle from behind her leg, aimed at the bear and squeezed the trigger.  The sharp report of her gun caused her horse to dance to the side, but she easily kept her seat and clenched her knees to keep it still as she reloaded and took aim again.  She found there was no need, as her first shot had hit the crazed animal just behind its eye, putting it out of its misery for good.  She quickly gathered the scattered horses as Kara jumped down and ran to her sister, crying her name.

            “ALEX!” she screamed.  “Oh, please don’t be dead, please!”  She fell to her knees and pulled her sister into her lap.

            By the time Lena rode back, Alex was pushing her sister away, trying to sit up, while Kara was just as adamantly trying to hold her down.  It was hard to tell what they were saying, as they were both attempting to shout over each other, and Lena let out the piercing whistle she’d learned from Kara, causing both sisters to stop and look at her, arms tangled and eyes wild.

            Lena let out a helpless laugh before climbing down and helping Alex up, looking at Kara in exasperation.  “She’s fine, Kara, she just got the wind knocked out of her,” she tried to calm the frightened younger girl.  “Still,” she turned to Alex “we should probably check and see that you didn’t break anything.”

            Alex nodded, winced, and put her hand to the back of her head.  “Yeah, that would probably be a good idea,” she agreed.

            Leaving Kara to see if her sister was wounded, she’d walked toward the dead bear, surprised at the size of it.  It hadn’t looked that big from a dozen yards back.  Alex came up behind her, followed by Kara, and the three of them stood looking down at the animal that had almost cost them everything.  The older girl knelt beside its head and looked at the killing shot, whistling between her teeth before turning to grin at Lena.

            “That was a hell of a shot for someone who learned how to hunt less than a week ago,” she said as she stood and stepped close to wrap her arms around a very startled Lena, hugging her tightly.  “Thank you, Lena.  You probably saved all our lives today.  I’m very glad my sister didn’t follow protocol.”  She stepped back and winked at Lena, while Kara stood beside them with her mouth hanging open and her eyes so wide Lena thought they might fall out.

            “Did she just say she was glad I didn’t follow the rules?” Kara asked in disbelief, one finger pointed at Alex’s back as she returned to her mount to get her skinning kit.

            “Well, I did just save all our lives, didn’t you hear?” Lena teased.

            “Hey!” Kara spluttered, “I was there too!  You saw how the bear jumped back when I yelled at it!”

            “Yes, dear, you were very scary,” Lena said in her most facetious tone as she patted the stunned blonde girl on the cheek, walking around her to get a closer look at the bear.

            Lena grinned when she heard Alex’s bark of laughter from the middle of their small herd of horses, but only Lena was close enough to hear Kara’s muttered “I hate you both…”

 

* * *

 

            Several days later, Lena had a very nice bear skin and a necklace of claws and teeth she wore proudly, pretending not to notice Kara rolling her eyes every time she caught her admiring it.  What she didn’t see were the looks her friend gave her when she wasn’t looking.

            They’d made it to a large lake just below the highest mountains Lena had ever seen, circling around to the south, where to her surprise they found a small town.  Well, perhaps town was too generous.  It was more like a way station consisting of a small store, a one-room inn of sorts and a stable.  All of which seemed to be empty, as far as Lena could tell.

            They dismounted in front of the store, tying their horses off to a sturdy post before making their way inside.  Lena was once again surprised, finding the store well-stocked with a rugged-looking man lounging behind the counter, his feet up and his hat tipped low over his eyes.  Alex cleared her throat and the man made a show of being startled out of sleep, pushing his hat back and blinking at the three women standing in front of his counter.

            “What can I do for you ladies?” he asked, clearing his throat and spitting into something behind the counter that Lena was very glad she couldn’t see.

            “We need some supplies,” Alex replied.  “We also have some extra horses if you’d rather trade.  We’re crossing the mountains and I don’t really want to feed all those animals up there.”  She looked slyly at Kara, “I have enough trouble feeding this one,” she cocked her head slightly and the man let out a deep laugh as Kara whirled on her sister, eyes flashing.

            “You…you…just you wait until we get home!” she glared at her sister.

            Alex just smirked at her and Lena hid her smile behind her hand as Kara threw up her hands and stomped out of the store.

            An hour later they’d resupplied, and Lena was the proud owner of her very own hat, along with two changes of practical clothes as well as a pair of sturdy boots.  They’d also managed to unload some of the horses, bringing their total down to just five, which Alex decided was a much more manageable number.  They spent the night at the small bunkhouse and rode out early the next morning, riding slowly up into the foothills.

            The crossing was harsh and took almost a week, snow lingering in the higher elevations and slowing them down, but they made it to the far side with little trouble from predators while the weather held fair.

            The only interesting thing to happen was that each night after they entered the snow line, Lena felt her bear skin move and a moment later a strong arm wrapped around her as Kara snuggled up against her back and muttered “Warm…” into her ear before sighing and going back to sleep.  At first, it was harder for Lena to find sleep again after that, but by the third night she came to welcome Kara’s warm body pressed against her own and once they were down into the trees on the far side, she found she missed her nighttime companion.

            If Alex felt anything about finding them together in the mornings, she said nothing, merely watched Lena closely and kept her own counsel.  After they crossed into California and Kara stopped crawling into Lena’s bedroll, she put it out of her mind, focused once more on leading them to their destination.

            Lena kept expecting Kara to say something about their nights together and when she didn’t, the brunette began to feel that she was reading too much into her feelings, that her pretty blonde friend couldn’t possibly like her that way.  And then Kara would smile at her, so bright and so cheerful that she felt her heart leap against her ribs, trying to claw its way out to get to the source of so much warmth and comfort.  It mostly just left her a nervous wreck of confusion and conflicted feelings, and she struggled every day not to show how much it was eating at her insides.  She began to have nightmares again, waking up sometimes two or three times a night, fighting not to make any noise lest she wake the others, especially Kara, who slept close but seemed to be keeping her distance.

            The two sisters began to notice that she seemed tired all the time, and hadn’t been eating as much.  Kara thought that maybe it was all the travelling, being on the road too long after years of staying in one place, but Alex knew better.  She tried to get her sister to talk to the girl, but Kara seemed to pull back when she mentioned it and the older girl decided not to push and just let them work it out on their own.

 

* * *

 

            Another week passed, two days spent huddling under a large overhanging shelf of rock as a torrential storm raged around them.  Not being able to find dry wood, they subsisted on trail rations and dried bear meat and kept warm by huddling together under Lena’s bearskin.  Those two days were the only time since the mountains that Lena was able to sleep through the night, with Kara squished between her and her sister, arms and legs tangled in the confined space.

            After the storm moved on, they were able to make better time, heading almost directly south now.  They stopped at a few more way stations, this time seeing more and more people the closer they got to the coast.  Many of these were miners, here to dredge gold from the streams, but there were also trappers and quite a few settlers.

            The closer they came to their destination, the more somber and withdrawn Lena became, and now even Kara noticed something was terribly wrong with her, not just travel fatigue.  One evening, as they were setting up camp, Kara watched as Lena moved listlessly about, putting out her things more on muscle memory than any actual conscious thought.  When she went to a nearby stream for water, Kara followed behind, careful not to let her friend see, but she needn’t have worried.  Lena saw nothing, trudging along a game trail toward the stream and simply standing there staring at it when she reached the rocky bank.

            Kara watched from some bushes as Lena stood, swaying slightly, staring at nothing before she collapsed to her knees and folded over to hold her head in her hands, her muffled sobbing barely reaching Kara’s hiding place.  For a handful of heartbeats, the blond girl was frozen with horror, then she rushed toward her friend, all her reservations forgotten as she witnessed Lena’s pain.

            Kneeling behind her, Kara wrapped her arms around Lena’s shoulders, holding her while she cried, pulling her around to face her so she could hold her properly and Lena clutched desperately at her shirt, great, wracking sobs shaking her body as Kara held her tight and whispered into her ear.

            “Shh, shh, Lena, my sweet raven, oh, what’s wrong?  I thought you were just tired from all the traveling, but there’s something else, isn’t there?  Please tell me, tell me what I can do to help you?”

            Lena cried for what felt like days, her exhaustion finally catching up with her, and she lost consciousness, unable to even hear the questions or comfort coming from her friend.  Kara was frantic as she carried her back to their campsite, shocked at how light the other girl felt in her arms.  Alex did her best to calm her sister, sending her to get water while she wrapped Lena in her bearskin beside the fire and rummaged for the ingredients to make a broth, not wanting to take any chances.

            Fading in and out of sleep, Lena heard random fragments of conversation and struggled to string them together, not having much luck as her tired brain refused to function correctly, mixing what she heard with her recent memories into a strange brew of twisted horrors.

            “…can’t just leave her like this, Alex, can’t you…”

_The tall, thin woman lay dead at her feet, blood running out of gaping wounds in her back, screaming at her to run as giant men with black bandannas and glowing eyes ran toward her firing terrible guns that spat fire…_

            “…doesn’t feel like she has a fever, but I don’t like how pale…”

_She sat crammed in a small space, dim light seeping through cracks to the left and right.  She leaned over and pulled at one of them and a shade rolled up, letting a sick yellow light flow over her and she screamed, the rotting bodies of the old woman and the overweight man pressed against her…_

            “…please come back to me…”

_Two men held her arms, while two more stood laughing down at the still, sprawled body of a young girl with sunlight yellow hair while she struggled and screamed over and over until one of them hit her in the face and blackness took her…_

            “…you think that made her feel, when you pulled…”

_She stood alone, watching two slim figures ride away from her, one horse black as night, the other white as the moon…_

            “…come on, Lena, you need to at least try to eat someth…”

_She was strapped to a chair, the table in front of her piled high with spoiled food, maggots crawling and flies hovering like storm clouds.  Her mother stood next to her, fork in hand, trying to shove a putrid morsel into her mouth, and no matter how much she twisted, it kept coming closer…_

 

* * *

 

            It was dark and silent when she woke next, the fire burned down to embers, the local wildlife strangely absent, as if they were waiting for some signal to return.  She felt weak, lethargic and unable to even find the will to try and move.  So she lay there, listening, trying to remember what had happened.  The last thing she recalled, they were riding through a pine forest, birds singing and sunlight slanting down through the trees to dust the ferns with golden halos.

            Now it was as dark as she’d ever seen, the only light coming from the faint glow of the fire pit.  No moon, no stars even, just the dim red of the coals.  The more she tried to remember, the emptier she felt.  Looking around without moving, she could make out a shape on the other side of the fire.  _That must be Alex_ , she thought.  But where was Kara?  She couldn’t see her anywhere and the fear that had saturated her dreams began to seep into her waking mind.

            The rising panic lent strength to her weakened muscles, adrenaline sparking like a wildfire in her mind as she reached to throw off the fur wrapped tightly around her.  As soon as she moved, however, she felt a strong arm tighten around her waist and a warm nose worm its way behind her ear, a sleepy voice whispering, “Shh, I’m here, you’re safe, shh…”

            The fire in her mind dimmed and winked out as she sank into the warm body pressed to her back, breath coming in shaking gasps as she twined her fingers around Kara’s and pulled her hand up to tuck it beneath her chin.  She lay awake for the rest of the night, simply enjoying the feeling of being held so close, the safest she’d ever felt in her life.  Daylight was slow in coming, dark clouds hanging low over the trees making the night seem longer, like it was refusing to let the sun rise.

            Nothing stops the sun, however, and soon enough the pale light of dawn gilded the trees silver, the faint mist swirling around their roots made it seem as if they’d sprung from clouds.  Alex began to stir, sitting up and stretching before climbing to her feet and disappearing into the fog.  Lena lay still, her breathing even, waiting, yet not sure for what.  When Kara woke, she heard the taller girl’s breathing stop and felt her heart beat faster against her back, tried not to move as her friend sat up slowly, unwilling to untangle their fingers where they were trapped under Lena’s chin.  She felt the blonde girl lean over her and opened her eyes.

            Rolling onto her back as she looked up at Kara, she tried to smile but felt tears slide down her cheeks as she whispered “ _I’m sorry,_ ” over and over.  She felt herself lifted and wrapped her arms around the girl now holding her, crying quietly into her shoulder.  Kara’s hands were strong as they gently rubbed circles on her back.

            “Lena, shh, it’s ok, you’re safe.  There’s nothing for you to be scared of and there’s no reason to apologize, you did nothing wrong, we’re here, I’m here,” Kara comforted her, holding her tight.

            Kara held her for a long time, until her tears were merely faint tracks dried on her cheeks.  She felt hollow, like everything inside her had been scooped out and replaced with the fog that was drifting among the trees.  She finally pulled back, embarrassed, looked over to see Alex regarding her with something resembling understanding and quickly turned away.  Kara piled two canvas bags behind her and helped her to lean against them while she brought a bowl of soup that Alex had ready, warmed from the night before.

            “Don’t eat too fast,” Kara warned her, “you haven’t had solid food in two days and I don’t want you to get sick.”

            “Two days?” Lena replied, shocked.  “What happened?”

            “Kara said she found you by the stream and you passed out.  We couldn’t wake you and you wouldn’t eat, so all we could do was wait and see if you came out of it on your own,” Alex explained.

            Lena sipped slowly at her soup, putting it down to say “I’m sor…” when Kara quickly cut her off.

            “No!  No more apologies, Lena.  You didn’t do anything wrong, I told you.  Now eat your soup, or I’ll have to feed it to you myself,” Kara glared at her and Lena quickly picked up her bowl and followed orders.  Neither of them noticed Alex’s small smile from the other side of the fire.

 

* * *

 

            After breakfast Alex went out into the forest to hunt and Kara sat beside Lena, putting her arm around the shorter girl and keeping her upright as they leaned against the pile of bags.  They watched the horses grazing among the trees, listened to the birds and the wind in the high branches, Lena resting her head on Kara’s shoulder.  After a time, her friend attempted to ask a question.

            “Lena.  When I found you by the stream, you were collapsed, crying, you couldn’t hear me, and I don’t know, I mean, I can’t understand why, or what happened, and if it was something I did, or did something happen?  When we couldn’t wake you, you talked in your sleep, and screamed sometimes and you were thrashing around and I was so scared and didn’t, there wasn’t anything we could see that was wrong and the only time you stopped was when I held you.  I don’t know…” she stammered to a stop.

            Unsure where to begin, Lena didn’t reply right away, instead trying to gather her thoughts and organize them in a way that made sense.  Kara began to fidget and was ready to speak again when Lena took her hand and tried to explain what she was feeling.

            “It wasn’t something you did, Kara.  I can’t put that blame on you, not alone.  I’m not sure how to even explain this.  You don’t really know anything about my family, I try not to talk about them.  I was adopted when I was very young, four I think, and my mother and father aren’t…they’re not the most understanding, or caring, people.  At least not to me.  My brother, he was the only one who cared about me, but he was always the favorite.  No matter what I did, nothing was good enough, and then I was sent away to school, and I was alone.  I never really had any friends and now my only family was halfway around the world.

            So I poured all my efforts into my studies, learning whatever my books could teach me, which, as you saw, wasn’t practical knowledge.  I suppose I isolated myself to keep from being hurt, and after a while, I guess it became a habit, or just my natural state of being.”  She slowly rubbed her thumb across the back of Kara’s hand.

            “And then,” she went on, slowly, “I met you, and you saved my life.  You were so brave and selfless and beau…strong, and I trusted you immediately, even though I didn’t know you.  I think I’ve cried more since I’ve known you than I ever have since I was five.  'A Luthor never cries.  A Luthor never shows weakness.'  I heard that mantra every day after I was adopted.  But why?  Why does crying show weakness?  I never understood and I don’t think I ever will.”

            Kara was very still beside her, her face a mask as she listened, and heard, and wanted to un-hear.  Lena went on, not noticing the change in her friend.

            “You became my friend, my first true friend, without any hesitation, just because.  You treated me like I was normal, not some delicate thing to be taken down and dusted only to be put back on a shelf and shown off like a prized plate.  I can’t tell you what that means to me, what it will always mean that you saw me for _me_.  And then we started getting closer, and after the mountains, you pulled away, I could feel it, and it felt like you were leaving, sending me away just like my parents, and I couldn’t, I don’t think I could stand it if you sent me away…” she trailed off, fresh tears sliding down her face as she closed her eyes.

            It was quiet between them for a long time before Kara rested her head against Lena’s and said softly, “I will never send you away Lena.  You’re my friend forever and nothing will ever change that, I promise you.”

 

* * *

 

            Squinting her eyes almost closed, Lena stumbles into the smithy, calling out, “James!  Winn!  Anyone!?”  Just as a loud crash sounds from further inside, followed by a great clattering noise.  Light slowly filters in as a hatch opens in the roof and the smoke begins to clear.  A figure covered in black dust staggers into view, coughing and slapping at his clothes.  He looks up and sees her and smiles widely, his teeth flashing in his blackened face as he calls out to her, “Lena!”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always, comments are welcome. ugh, this one was rough...


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> almost done with the flashbacks. the end of the journey to national city and some family drama

 

* * *

 

            “I didn’t expect to see you back so soon after our last…mishap,” Winn greets her warmly, ushering her back toward her private work area.

            “What, this?” she gestures to the scab on her face as she scoffs at the very thought that something so small could deter her.  “You should know me better than that by now.  And should I even ask what happened before I got here?”

            “No, you shouldn’t,” a deep voice precedes James into the room.  “I swear, Winn, if you burn down my smithy…” the threat hangs in the air, and the smaller man has the decency to look ashamed as he stammers out an apology.

            Lena smiles at them and excuses herself to the small room where she works, closing the door and opening the window over her workbench.  As she sits and pulls out her notes two young girls run past her window, laughing and shrieking as they chase each other.  Lena smiles and lets her thoughts wander.

 

* * *

 

            Lena wasn’t sure how long they sat there, hands entwined, before Kara spoke again.

            “I was adopted too.  My family died when I was very young, my cousin and I the only survivors.  I guess I was lucky that the family that took me in was so good,” Kara said softly.  “I never really thought about what my life would have been if my parents didn’t care about me, if they’d sent me away.  I’m sorry I made you doubt me, that wasn’t…I didn’t mean to push you away.”

            Neither of them spoke again, simply sitting together until Alex appeared from the trees with dinner.  They spent another day in camp while Lena rested and recovered her strength, Alex not wanting to chance her falling ill.  By the following morning she was feeling much stronger, and they continued their journey south, three more days bringing them to the crest of a tall ridge where they looked down on a wide valley, a river snaking its way to empty into the ocean in a narrow delta, farms and ranches scattered far from the small town near the coast.

            All three of them sighed with relief as they began to pick their way down to the valley floor, relief at reaching their destination evidenced by the sudden uplifting of their spirits as Kara and Alex pestered each other, in Kara’s smile when she looked back at the green-eyed girl riding last in the string of horses. 

            Lena felt conflicted.  On one hand, their journey was safely over and on the other she was closer than ever to the family that had cast her out.  She knew this also might be the last time she would see Kara as the two sisters moved on to wherever their business would take them.

 

* * *

 

            Instead of riding through the night, they decided to camp on the valley floor after their grueling climb down the face of the ridge, its steep trails putting too much strain on the horses for Alex’s piece of mind.  Lena was withdrawn as they set up their tent, the low clouds signaling a possible storm coming in from the west, and Kara stayed closer to her than usual, trying to engage her in conversation and hoping to distract her from her dark mood.  It seemed to work, at least a little, as her infectious good nature and bright smile coaxed an answering one from the dark-haired girl.

            After supper, however, instead of joining them around the fire as she usually did, Lena retired to the tent, wrapped herself in the bear skin, and curled into a ball, her knees drawn up and her arms tight around them.  Kara followed soon after, worried once more, and crawled under the covers beside her friend.  She placed her hand gently on Lena’s back and whispered her name.  She was startled slightly as Lena quickly rolled over and threw her arms around Kara’s neck, burying her face against her skin and shivering with silent sobs.

            Kara eased her arms around Lena and held her tightly, neither of them quite willing to break the almost suffocating silence that permeated the inside of the tent.  Kara watched the shifting shadows cast by the fire as they flickered across the canvas, waiting for a calm she hoped would return to her distraught friend.  After a time, Lena quieted, her breathing slowed and evened out once more, and Kara new it was time.

            “Lena, talk to me.  What’s wrong?”

            After a few small sniffles, she answered, “We’re almost there.  Tomorrow I’ll be back with my family and you…” she drew in a shaking breath that shivered over the soft skin of Kara’s neck, sending goosebumps racing down her arms, “you and Alex will be gone.”

            Kara almost laughed, but caught herself.  Even so, Lena could hear the smile in her voice as she explained, “Is that why you’ve been so sad today, you thought we were just coming here to see you home and then we’d ride off into the sunset?”

            Lena hated the way her voice sounded strangled as she forced out her reply.  “Aren’t you?”

            This time a small chuckle escaped her as she smoothed Lena’s hair, pulling back so she could look at her friend while wiping at the tears on her pale face as she explained, “Of course not!  First, I would never abandon you like that, and second, we came here because my cousin’s family sent us a letter to ask for our help.  We were headed here all along, so it was just extra lucky for you that we met when we did.  You know, aside from that whole me saving your life thing, which I would have done anyway.”

            “You’re really not leaving?” Lena all but gasped, her eyes wide and threatening to spill fresh tears as she gave Kara an almost pleading look.

            “I swear, we’re not going anywhere,” the blonde girl reassured her.

            Lena surged into her once more as she buried her face into Kara’s neck, arms wrapped tightly around her and hands tangled in her hair.  Kara gently rubbed Lena’s back until she fell asleep and then allowed herself to drift off as well.

 

* * *

 

            By noon the next day, they were riding down the single street of National City, curious glances following them as they stopped in front of the sheriff’s office.  Before they could even dismount, a short, dark woman stepped out to lean casually against one of the posts holding up the overhanging wooden awning.  Lena could see that even though she was smaller than even herself, she was not someone to take lightly.  Strong hands and muscular arms crossed over her chest and her dark eyes were hard, taking in everything as she moved them over the three women in front of her.  Lena glanced over to Alex, and was quick to nudge Kara with her elbow, tilting her chin slightly to call the younger girl’s attention to her sister.

            Alex’s face was a study in conflicting emotions.  Lena could see she was trying to project her usual cool, professional detachment, but underlying that was clear interest and, if Lena’s own recent feelings lent her any insight, physical attraction.  Lena shared a small smile with Kara as her friend looked at her before the shorter woman drew their attention back as she began to speak.

            “I’m Sheriff Sawyer, what can I do for you ladies?” her voice was rich and she rolled the r in sheriff with a curious accent.  Alex swallowed audibly.

            “H-hi, hello, I’m Marshal Danvers, this is my deputy and that’s Lena.  We’re here to, yes, to bring her home, and visit family.  Oh, and I need to speak to whoever’s in charge of the stage line,” she finished, finally regaining her confidence.

            The sheriff smiled at her, the corners of her eyes crinkling and stepped forward to extend her hand.  “Nice to meet you, Danvers.  Let me grab my horse and I’ll take you over.”

            Alex shook her hand firmly, then straightened as the sheriff walked around to the back of the building.  She didn’t notice Kara and Lena snickering and wiggling their eyebrows at each other while she tried not to stare after the departing woman.  A few moments later Sheriff Sawyer rode back to the street on a sturdy horse and led them down three buildings to the office of the man who ran the stage line.  Alex and the sheriff disappeared inside while Lena and Kara swung down from their horses to stretch and moved into the shade of the awning.

            They were dozing on a bench when the two women came back out with a boy to unload the personal belongings of the two dead passengers from the spare horses and carry them inside.  Yawning and stretching, Lena pulled a whining Kara to her feet as they walked over to join Alex.

            Kara stuck out her hand and when the sheriff took it she chirped out, “Deputy Marshal Kara Danvers!” as she shook the proffered hand enthusiastically, her smile wide as the shorter woman introduced herself as Maggie.

            Lena held out her hand in turn and smiled brightly as she introduced herself.  “Lena Luthor, it’s nice to meet you Sheriff Sawyer.”

            Both Maggie and Alex froze at the mention of her surname, Alex’s stare becoming hard and threatening and Maggie’s gaze turning cautious and withdrawn, her smile fading from her face as she gripped Lena’s hand harder than she had a moment ago.

            Lena was confused and quickly pulled her hand back, cradling it in her other one as if the sheriff had squeezed a bit too hard.  Kara stepped closer to her, and Lena shot her a grateful look as she glared at her sister and Maggie.

            “What is wrong with you, Alex?!  This is _Lena_ , not some monster crawling out from under your bed!” she whirled on Maggie.  “And you!  You haven’t even _met_ her, and I can see you trying to judge her already!  You both should be _ashamed_ of yourselves!”  Hands in fists on her hips, blue eyes flashing dangerously as she threw her challenge into their startled faces, golden hair dancing in a light breeze, and Lena knew at that moment there was no coming back for her, for she was surely lost.

            Alex blinked as she looked at her sister, and she opened her mouth to reply, but no sound came.  She looked at the slim, dark-haired girl standing behind Kara, eyes cast down and hands twisting together and remembered the weeks they’d spent traveling, the hardships this stranger had been put through, no complaint ever leaving her lips even though she was clearly unaccustomed to such things, how she learned and grew, how she would clearly do anything for Kara, how she’d saved all their lives, and Alex felt shame burn her face.  She stepped forward, walking around her sister and wrapped her arms around a startled Lena, pulling her into a tight hug.

            “Kara’s right.  I’m so sorry, Lena,” she apologized, “that was unworthy of me and disrespectful to you.  You have been nothing but kind and selfless since we met, and I should not have judged you for the actions of your family.”

            Lena’s eyes were wide and Alex could see the tears threatening to fall as she stepped back.  She could see Kara smiling at her in her peripheral vision and turned to her with a nod before backing away another step and turning to face the sheriff before continuing, “Lena isn’t like her family, Sheriff Sawyer.  You should get to know her before you lump her in with them.”

            Maggie glanced between the three of them, giving Lena a considering look before turning at the sound of a gunshot and breaking glass.  She sighed and closed her eyes briefly before marching across the street toward what appeared to be a saloon of some kind, Alex and Kara following, leaving Lena standing alone in the shade of the awning.  She watched them for a few moments before slowly crossing the street behind them.  She’d just reached the swinging doors when a man who had clearly been drinking heavily was thrown bodily into the middle of the roadway.  A large man with dark brown skin stepped out behind his former customer and stood staring down at him with massive arms crossed over his thick chest.

            His voice was deep and his tone seemed to chill the hot summer air as he spoke, “You are no longer welcome here, Michael.  Leave now and do not return.”

            The thin man with a lean, scruffy face dragged himself up, slapping at the dust covering his clothes.  He peered blearily around, noticed the large man standing before the door of the saloon and advanced on him with pointing finger, his words slurring as he staggered sideways before righting himself with obvious effort.

            “I don’t know, who you think, you are, but you can’t shtop me from dhrihnking where, I want.  Do you even, know, who I work for?” he swayed to a stop, clutching at the nearest hitching post.

            “I do not care who you work for.  If you step foot in The Red Ochre again I will remove your useless head from your shoulders.”  With this final warning, the man turned and strode back into the saloon.

            The drunk man, Michael, cursed at his back and kicked savagely at the dirt of the street, sending himself sprawling once more into the dust.  Spitting more curses, he pulled himself up and staggered away, stopping to be noisily sick against the side of a building before continuing on his way.

            Promising herself to be wary of him in the future and fixing his features in her mind, Lena stepped gingerly inside the saloon, letting her eyes adjust and looking curiously around.  There were maybe a half a dozen people inside, not counting Maggie, Alex, Kara and the tall man who seemed to be the owner.  She sidled up to the group of women standing by the bar, skirting tables and patrons alike, just in time to hear them address the owner.

            “J’onn,” Maggie greeted him with a nod.  “This is Marshal Danvers and her deputy Kara,” the man, J’onn, nodded to them as they were introduced, “and this is Lena.”  Lena didn’t miss how the sheriff avoided mentioning her surname as J’onn nodded to her as well.

            “Please forgive me for that rude greeting.  We have had trouble lately with certain…men,” he was clearly about to say something else, quickly replacing the offending word at the last minute.  “I assure you, our town is generally not like that.  Or it wasn’t, until recently.”

            None of them missed the darkness in his tone, or the look he shared with the sheriff, and Lena wondered if it had anything to do with her family.  Before she could work through her reasoning, two young girls came hurtling down the stairs from the upper story, laughing and shrieking as they chased each other around tables, customers and visitors, completely absorbed in their game until a stern word from J’onn brought them skidding to a halt in front of him.

            “M’rtaa, L’uraa, why aren’t you at school?” he questioned, looking down at them.  They looked down, clasping their hands behind their backs and he sighed.  “You were sent home again, weren’t you?”

            “It wasn’t our fault, grandfather!” the darker of the two explained, “Franklin was throwing rocks at L’uraa and calling her names!”

            “And so M’rtaa hit him in the face and then kicked him between the legs!” the lighter-skinned girl added.  “Then Miss Gemma came running out-“

            “-and started yelling at us, saying how we ought to be ‘shamed of ourselves for attacking-“

            “-a defenseless boy,” the sentence flowing from one to the other and back without pause as they told their story.

            Alex and Kara had identical looks of concern on their faces as they heard what happened to the two girls, while Maggie and Lena were both trying to hide their smiles behind their hands at how they’d handled the situation.  J’onn sighed and gave them a pained look.

            “Did you have to injure him, M’rtaa?  Why did you not bring this to your teacher?  You know his family will use this to cause more trouble for us,” he pointed out gently.

            The darker girl, M’rtaa, looked ashamed for a moment before her eyes hardened and her face became resolute.  “Miss Gemma doesn’t believe us when we tell her, because the others stop when she’s there, so she says we just lie to get attention or to get the other children in trouble.  No one will help us but us, so I did what I had to do,” she stated firmly.

            L’uraa shifted closer and took M’rtaa’s hand in hers, nodding firmly at her words.  “We have to protect each other, grandfather, or the others will hurt us.”

            J’onn sighed again and rolled his shoulders as if preparing for battle.  “I suppose I’ll have to have a talk with your teacher then,” he started, when Maggie cut him off.

            “No, J’onn, I’ll take care of this.  No one should be treated this way, no matter their age.  I’ll head over there after you tell me all about what just happened here.”

            J’onn nodded and sent the girls back upstairs to find their grandmother and help her with the many tasks required to run the business, before turning back to the sheriff and describing the incident.  It turned out that a regular, Mike, came in earlier than usual that day and began drinking well before noon.  He became belligerent and refused to leave when asked, pulling out his firearm and threatening violence.  J’onn disarmed him as he tried to fire his weapon at another patron and tossed him out into the street.  He reached over the bar and pulled out a battered pistol and handed it to Maggie.

            “I have little hope he’ll heed my advice and stay away,” J’onn lamented.  “His employer makes him bolder than he would be otherwise, and he does not fear repercussions as he should.  I fear I will be forced to uphold my threat upon his life.”

            Maggie patted him on the arm and gave him a smile, reassuring him, “I’ll take care of it J’onn.  It’s my job, after all.  The law applies to everyone, no matter what their name is.”  She gave Lena a look that three of them understood, while the tall man just looked relieved at her words.  Lena felt the uneasiness from earlier worm its way back into her gut.

 

* * *

 

            While Maggie left to deal with the teacher and try to find the drunkard before he caused any more trouble, Alex decided to find the local blacksmith and get new shoes for her horse while Kara elected to stay with Lena, who nervously asked the saloon owner where she could find the Luthors.

            He gave her a long look trying to determine what exactly she wanted with that particular family, but in the end he gave her directions to their estate outside of town, returning to his job as they made their way outside.

            They returned to the other side of the street and Lena stood beside her horse, uncertainty on her face as she absently chewed a broken nail.  Kara studied her for a moment and then nudged her with a shoulder, causing Lena to look up at her friend.  She raised an eyebrow and the blonde girl smiled at her with what she hoped was reassurance.

            “Come on, Lena, the longer you put it off, the harder it’s going to be,” Kara coaxed.

            Lena sighed, “I know, I know, I should just get it over with.  Will you come with me?” she asked suddenly.

            “Of course I will,” Kara smiled back, and Lena felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

            They rode out of town, following the directions they were given, and before the sun had moved more than a few inches in the sky they were approaching a large white house, two stories at least, with multiple outbuildings and a large stable.  Several people moved about the grounds, most of them obviously servants of some kind, but one man stood out both by his clothing and the fact he was completely bald though his face was unlined.  He stopped saddling his horse and looked up as they rode toward him, a puzzled expression on his face, as if he were struggling to remember a memory half forgotten.

            “May I help you?” he asked politely.  “If you’re here to see my father, I’m afraid he’s gone to the mine for the day,” he offered.  He was soft-spoken, yet his voice was rich with inflection, seeming to draw every nuance from the words he chose with utmost care, and Lena recognized him instantly, throwing herself off her horse and into his arms.  Startled, he caught her easily and looked down at her long, dark hair.

            She pulled back and looked at him, smiling widely.  “I’m not surprised you don’t recognize me, since I’ve been gone almost ten years,” she teased at his confused look.

            His eyes went wide and he gasped audibly, wrapping her in his arms and spinning her around, a joyous laugh ringing across the well-kept lawn.  “Lena!” he all but crowed, the emotion in his voice clear, “We though the worst, when you didn’t arrive.  I was just headed into town again to pester the stage office, we expected you weeks ago, what happened?”  He held her at arm’s length and looked at her, checking her for injuries and just admiring in general how she’d grown from a scared little girl into the competent woman standing before him today.

            “It’s a long story, Lex.  The short version is the coach was attacked and I was saved,” she motioned with her hand back to Kara, still astride Cloud, “by my friend.  She and her sister brought me here, and here I am.”

            Lex stepped around her and approached Kara, extending his hand and smiling warmly at her.  “You have my eternal gratitude, Lena’s friend, and if there’s ever anything you need, or anything at all I can do, you have only to let me know, and it will be yours,” he clasped her hand between his own and the sincerity in his eyes was evidence he meant what he said.

            “Deputy Marshal Kara Danvers,” she introduced herself, “and it was my honor to save your sister.”  The smile she flashed Lena was one of her brightest, and the green-eyed girl felt her ears grow warm.  Luckily her hat hid them from view.

            “And I’m Alexander Luthor,” he returned her introduction, “but please, call me Lex.”  He stepped back and hooked his arm around Lena’s shoulders before he continued, “Well, now that you’ve saved me a trip to town, we should get you settled, and Miss Danvers, you should come in as well, I’m sure I can have someone bring us some refreshment,” he turned and called to several of the servants working around the property, and they came jogging over.  As he instructed them in the unloading of Lena’s luggage and sent them off with the horses, he ushered the two young women inside the house.

 

* * *

 

            The inside of the Luthor’s manor was impressive, expensive woodwork abounded, with sturdy furniture aplenty.  Instead of being dark and enclosed, large windows let in generous amounts of light, and Kara noticed plenty of lamps and candelabras scattered everywhere, waiting to be lit as soon as the sunlight faded.  Looking around, though it was far from gloomy, Kara couldn’t help but notice it seemed empty, as if it were merely a painting or a hollow shell with nothing inside.

            No sooner did the thought cross her mind than a tall, severe woman in an expensive silk dress entered the room.  She greeted Lex warmly before turning to regard the two younger women, her gaze cold and calculating as she appraised them.  Finally she turned to Lena and the smile that curved her lips reminded Kara of a snake she’d seen when she was young, a mask hiding venomous fangs.  The woman stepped forward and embraced Lena, gestures stiff and awkward, and she pulled back almost as soon as she’d begun.

            “Well, it looks like you’ve _finally_ made your way home,” her voice was cool as fresh snow, her inflection clear and accusing, and Kara, who made it her life’s mission to befriend everyone she met, instantly hated her, forcing her hand to lie still at her side as her fingers itched for the solid weight of her gun, the cold steel of the trigger.

            Lena turned slightly and spoke to her, as if she somehow sensed the thought in her mind, “Deputy Marshal, this is my mother, Lillian Luthor.  Mother, Deputy Marshal Danvers.”  Lena’s voice was unlike anything Kara had heard from her before as she made the introduction, distant and achingly empty, and Kara’s heart broke for her.

            Nonetheless, she stepped forward and extended her hand in greeting.  “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Luthor,” her hand hung in the air as Lillian’s eyes raked over her, taking in her dusty clothes and stained hat, her gun belt and well-worn boots, the frayed cuffs of her trousers.  She sniffed and turned away, sweeping out of the room without even a second glance at her daughter.  Kara slowly lowered her hand to her side, subconsciously caressing the butt of her pistol as she turned back to Lena, her eyes blazing.  Lena offered a sad smile and a half-hearted shrug as Lex moved into the next room and called for a servant to bring food and drink.

 

* * *

 

            The rest of the afternoon passed without incident and Kara bade Lena farewell as she prepared to return to town for her sister.  Lena looked around before wrapping her arms tightly around Kara’s neck and pulling her into a fierce hug before quickly letting go and hurrying back into the house.  She watched from the window of her bedroom on the second floor as Kara rode away.

            That night, after waking from the usual nightmares and losing what remained of her supper, she sat and thought of her friend, missing her closeness and unshakable good nature.  After a while, she crawled back into bed and slept fitfully until morning.

 

* * *

 

            Shaking herself out of her memories, she smiles as M’rtaa and L’uraa chase each other around the yard of the smithy, dodging around piles of scrap and the failed hulks of Winn’s less-than-successful experiments.

            Opening her notebook, she begins to jot down an idea that had come to her before she fell asleep the night before, soon tuning out all the distractions from both in and outside the building.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew, super long birthday chapter :)
> 
> so, i wanted this to be the last flashback chapter, but it didn't work out that way. gods, this one didn't want to be written i think. took me two days, but i got it done. so the next one should be the last flashback, since i only have two months to get through to catch up and it's not as action-packed as the traveling bit.
> 
> oh, and if you didn't catch it, the end of the flashback here loops to the end of chapter one.
> 
> as always, comments are welcome. hope you enjoy it! :)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the wait, i'm still alive, i promise

* * *

 

            Kara rides anxiously toward the smithy, her face a mask of concern as she sees the plume of thick, black smoke rising from the building at the edge of town.  She looks around, but everyone she passes seems to be taking this event in stride, most of them doing no more than giving a cursory glance before returning to whatever task they’d been involved in.  Calmed slightly by this lack of panic among the townsfolk, she steadies her breathing and urges Cloud quickly toward the still-smoking building.

 

* * *

 

            As Kara rode back toward town, she turned and raked her eyes over the imposing white house, the windows reflecting the setting sun.  She noticed movement on the second floor and a moment later was able to make out Lena’s pale hand pressed to the glass.  She raised her own hand in farewell before turning and kicking Cloud into a gallop, wanting to make it back to town before dark.

            Thoughts drifting as her body moved easily in time with her horse, the blonde girl found herself remembering the first time she saw her Raven, held upright between two weather-beaten outlaws, face bleeding and hair matted with blood.  She’d been so angry at the sight that she’d ridden Cloud right at them with no thought of her own safety.  It wasn’t until she’d pulled the girl to her feet that she noticed how striking she was, even with the wound and the blood her eyes burned with emerald fire and Kara found herself stumbling over her words for the first time in her life.

            The next weeks, as they traveled, Kara became more and more enraptured by Lena, first at the way she moved, then by her piercing gaze that seemed to miss no detail, and on to her shining laugh and her long, midnight hair.  It wasn’t until the second night, as she carried the exhausted girl to bed that she noticed her scent, like sage and wild honey, and she couldn’t help but lay a gentle kiss on her bandaged cheek, and her entire body burned with white fire when Lena caught her hand and brought it to her lips and she felt their silk against the tips of her fingers.

            The more time they spent together, the stronger Kara felt pulled toward her.  She wasn’t sure when she gave her the nickname in her mind, but she began to think of Lena as her Raven.  Maybe it was the hair, or the quick, precise movements, or the way that deep green stare stayed fixed on whatever task she turned her mind to until it was done.  Whichever it was, it became increasingly more difficult not to say it aloud and the one time it slipped out she was relieved that Lena had been too far gone to hear her, if only because she didn’t know how to explain how she felt and was too embarrassed to ever try to say it aloud, not to mention what if Lena didn’t feel the same way?

            After the mountains, when Lena fell so far and the only thing able to bring her back was Kara’s touch, she felt almost lost within herself.  Never had her heart wanted anything more than this fragile girl in her arms and to see her hurting drove Kara almost to the brink of madness, only the thought of what would happen without her enough to keep her clinging desperately to sanity.  After the day Lena collapsed, Kara kept an almost constant watch over her, wary for any sign that she was falling back into the darkness that had almost stolen her away.

            The intensity of her feelings surprised and concerned her and she found herself trying to talk to her sister without saying anything specific.  She was never sure that Alex hadn’t already figured it out before she even said anything, but her advice certainly helped and the closer they got to National City and the more withdrawn Lena became, the more she tried to keep her spirits up though her own heart was breaking.  Their last night together, when Lena told her why she’d been so distant, Kara felt like she could fly.  After she assured her that they weren’t going to leave her alone, Lena had buried her face in her neck, lips pressed to her pulse, hands twisted in her hair, and Kara was almost afraid to breathe for fear that she would move, and she desperately didn’t want her to move.  Eventually Lena fell asleep and, just before she drifted off, Kara felt the ghost of a kiss dust across her neck.  She had a difficult time sleeping after that, but never said anything, keeping it like a secret locked in her heart.

 

* * *

 

            Seeing Lena safely home should have been a gratifying moment, and for half a heartbeat Kara was filled with hope at the way Lex greeted his sister.  Her Raven seemed almost happy, and then they went inside and met her mother.  Kara didn’t think she’d ever hated anyone before, let alone at first sight, not even the men she’d killed while rescuing her friend.  It was no longer true, that was certain.  As the distant, cold woman that had the gall to call herself a mother stalked from the room, Kara found her hand caressing the butt of her gun and had to force herself to relax and take a breath.  How Lena could stand to be in the same room with that woman for more than a moment, let alone years as a helpless child, Kara would never be able to understand, and her respect for Lena’s inner strength multiplied tenfold, how she had harbored such a kind heart was almost unfathomable.

            Hearing Alex calling her name snapped her out of her dark thoughts and they rode together toward the Kent farm, Kara telling her about Lena’s family and her sister laughing out a story about the two men who ran the smithy and some sort of crazy machine that seemed to be made to shoot sparks and start arguments.  They were still laughing about it as they rode up to a small, neat house near a pleasant stream and a woman who reminded them of their mother stepped out onto the wrap-around porch to greet them.

            Kara was off her horse in an instant and ran to greet her with a flying hug and a glad cry.  “Aunt Martha!  It’s so good to see you!”

            The woman chuckled and wrapped her arms around the excited girl, “It’s lovely to see you, too, Kara,” she was quick to reply.  “Alexandra, are you going to sit on that horse all night or are you going to come down and let me hug you?” she mock-glared at the eldest Danvers sister.

            Alex laughed and hopped down, striding up the wide steps to receive her hug in turn.  “It’s good to see you, Martha.  I hope we arrived in time to help you, and I’m sorry it took us so long to get here.  We had a couple of delays,” she explained without going into detail.

            “Oh, we’ve mostly had a stalemate since we sent that letter.  It seems neither side is ready to escalate matters, but you’ll have to talk to Jonathan, or maybe Clark, since they know more than I do.  Speaking of those two bottomless pits, you two had better get your horses settled and get back or there won’t be anything left,” she laughed.  “I was about to call them in for supper.”

            The girls were quick to obey, the thought of a home-cooked meal more than enough to spur them to swift action, and they had their horses settled in the barn and fed in record time, arriving back at the house just as Jonathan and Clark came jogging up from the opposite direction.  They gave and received hugs and greetings, Kara and her cousin talking excitedly while Alex pulled the older man to the side to speak to him in private.

            After they’d finished stuffing themselves, they sat around the table catching up, a lot having happened since the last time they’d seen each other.  It was close to midnight before they turned in, the girls happily sharing a room, and they fell asleep almost as soon as their heads hit their pillows.

            The sun was well up by the time Kara dragged herself out of bed, stretching and popping her back, unused to the softness of a mattress after long months of sleeping on the ground.  As she staggered out to the kitchen, yawning and squinting in the bright morning sun streaming in the windows, she tried to think of what she needed to be doing, but her mind kept insisting something was wrong.  She stopped in the kitchen doorway, trying to figure out what was clearly missing, until she realized it wasn’t a ‘what’ at all.  She missed Lena.  Lena, who had been there, a constant warm presence, at her side for almost a month, the first thing she saw in the morning and the last she saw before sleep took her at night.  And now she was stuck in that hollow house with that horrid woman.  Kara shivered and was resolved to see her as soon as she could.

            Soon was elusive, and turned out to be several days.  It was nearly a week since they’d arrived at the Kent farm before she had any free time, and Kara was sure that Lena must hate her.  When she rode into town to get Cloud re-shod, however, she found her Raven already at the smithy herself, talking to a tall man with dark skin and a short man that was unhealthily pale.  She swung down and walked slowly toward Lena and the two men, who seemed to be having some sort of disagreement.  As she drew closer, she heard something that caused her brows to draw together and a frown tug the corners of her mouth down.

            “I don’t care how much money you wave around,” the dark man said in a deep voice, “we don’t deal with Luthors!”  His voice was severe, and the look her was giving the dark-haired girl made Kara uneasy.

            “Look,” Lena replied in a forced-calm voice, “I don’t know what my family has done, I’ve only been here a week, I just need new shoes for my horse, he’s been through a lot.  Please.”  Kara had never expected to hear Lena beg, but this was as close as she’d ever heard someone come without actually falling to their knees.

            “Your excuses won’t make you any less a Luthor, now leave, you’re blocking other customers,” he stated in a dismissive tone, and Lena turned to go, the look on her face making Kara frown harder.

            Lena gasped as she looked up and saw Kara standing in front of her, her mouth pulling up in a small smile.  Kara didn’t notice, as her eyes were narrowed at the tall man standing in front of the open door of the smithy with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.  She took Lena’s hand in her own and nearly dragged her back toward the building, stopping in front of the blacksmith.

            “I don’t know who raised you,” she seethed at him, jabbing a finger toward his chest, “but I’m sure if she saw how you were treating this woman, someone you’ve never even met, over nothing more than a name she had no say in, she’d have something to say about it!”  Kara’s eyes were flashing in the sun, and her gaze was so hot she felt it might catch fire and melt him right there.

            She felt a soft hand on her shoulder, the slim fingers now entwined with her own gently pulling her back, and a soft voice saying, “Kara, it’s ok.  You don’t have to do this, I’ll find someone else or learn to do it myself.  Come on, I don’t want any trouble.”

            Kara let herself be pulled around as Lena started to lead her away, but she suddenly stopped.  “No, Lena, this isn’t right!  You can’t let people chase you away just because of your name!  You didn’t do anything to earn this!”  She whirled back around to face the man still standing in the open doorway, though his scowl seemed less severe and his brows furrowed in thought.

            Just as Kara was about to advance on him again, a small, dark girl wriggled past and out the door to stand in front of him, looking straight at her and Lena.  She looked puzzled for a moment, then smiled brightly and skipped toward them.

            “I know you!” she chirped.  “I saw you at grandmother’s with sheriff Maggie.”  She looked around curiously before turning back and asking, “Where’s your other friend?  Is she alright?”

            Kara couldn’t help but smile brightly back at her as she answered, “My sister is fine, she’s just busy so I came to get some new shoes for Cloud,” she pointed one finger at her horse and the girl turned and gasped as the sight of her.

            “She’s so beautiful!” she gushed.  “Can I pet her?!”

            Kara felt her smile falter and she glanced darkly at the man still standing in the doorway before turning back to the girl and saying sadly, “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.  That man doesn’t seem to like my friend and we were just about to leave, but it was nice to see you again… M’rtaa, right?”  The girl nodded.  “I hope things are going better for you at school.  Goodbye.”

            As Kara pulled Lena away they heard the girl stomping angrily toward the tall man, and her voice was very clear as she yelled at him.

            “Father, what did you do?!  Why did you make those nice ladies sad and why are they going away when her pretty white horse needs new shoes?  You better fix this so I can pet her or I’m going to tell mother _right now!_ ”

            They both stopped and turned back to watch as this tiny slip of a girl tore into the tall, powerful smith, and they were even more shocked when he quickly knelt to reassure her and try to explain what was happening.

            “M’rtaa, please listen, you don’t know everything that happened.  That girl with the dark hair is a Luthor and you know what they’ve done to this town, the kind of people they brought here.”

            “No, _you_ listen!” she shot back.  “I was at grandmother’s with L’uraa the same day she came to town with her friends, and I’d never seen her before which means she didn’t do _anything_ , you’re just being mean because of something someone else did!  Now you _fix it!_ ”

            Kara and Lena stared, mouths hanging open, as the man stood with a sigh and walked slowly toward them, his daughter marching right behind him with a scowl on her face.

            “It appears that I am wrong about you, Miss Luthor.  Please forgive my rudeness, and you as well, uhm…” he stopped as he realized he didn’t know Kara’s name.

            “Deputy Marshal Kara Danvers,” she stated firmly.

            “And you as well, Deputy Marshal Danvers.  My name is James and I would be happy to re-shoe your horses for you, if you would please lead them around to the side,” he gestured to the right side of the building before turning to head back inside, stopping to smile at his daughter and give her a hug.

            M’rtaa stepped forward hesitantly, looking with adoring eyes at Cloud, and Kara scooped her up and set her in the saddle as she and Lena led their mounts around the side of the building, the little girl’s smile lighting the way like a beacon.

 

* * *

 

            It turned out that Lena did not, in fact, hate her, and she completely understood that there were things that both she and her sister needed to take care of.  They spent the rest of the day together after the eventful morning at the smithy, telling each other everything that had happened in the past week, and Kara was relieved beyond words that it seemed like they’d never been apart.  They ate lunch at the Red Ochre, finally meeting the true owner, M’gann, and showering her with compliments about her granddaughters.  After she heard about the incident at the smithy, she assured both girls that she would be having a talk with her son-in-law, and Kara laughed as she explained that M’rtaa had probably already taken care of it.

            As they parted ways in the fading light of dusk, both Kara and Lena promised to see each other more often, and the hug they shared was long, Lena clinging desperately to her friend and Kara vowing silently to herself that she wouldn’t let more than two days pass before she saw her Raven again.

 

* * *

 

            She kept her vow, and every few days she would ride to the Luthor estate, or meet Lena in town.  A few times she invited her friend to the Kent farm, but each time there were excuses that Kara understood and let pass.

            The Luthors bought a building in town, and Lena moved there part time to work in the family business, Lex and Lionel being busy with the mine.  Over the next months, as she spent time riding with Lena around the valley to speak to different farmers and ranchers, she was impressed over and over again as she saw her friend becoming more assured of herself as she gradually built a rapport with the people.  She began to hear and address the various complaints that they brought to her, and she began to invest in their farms and ranches, bringing in more and better livestock from further away, and shipping in seed stock as she had a long wharf built out into the bay, as well as warehouses along the waterfront, while at the same time making preparations to ship out the next fall’s extra harvest.

            Kara wasn’t able to spend as much time with her friend as she would have liked, her duties with her sister taking her away at the same time Lena’s duties to her families’ business took her in another direction.  She did manage to meet her for lunch a few days a week, and even once was invited to share supper with her at the Luthor house, which she found to be entirely unpleasant, thanks in no small part to Lena’s mother.

            She put up with the discomfort, Lena’s hand in hers under the table more than making up for having to endure the cold stares and haughty aloofness the older woman wore like a cloak.  Thankfully, she swept from the room almost as soon as the remains of her food were cleared from in front of her by a serving girl, leaving Kara alone with Lena and Lex.  The conversation turned to business, with Lex enquiring about the duties Lena was currently overseeing and she in turn asking about the state of the mine.  Kara found herself fascinated at the way the two spoke to each other, so unlike the way she and Alex acted, their conversation almost seemed like a sparring match, or a strange game of strategy, each of them subtly trying to win points in a game Kara didn’t even know the rules to.

            After Lex retired for the night, she and Lena found themselves perched on a rough fence behind the barn, wrapped in Lena’s bearskin and staring out at the stars burning in the night sky.  Lena leaned her head on Kara’s shoulder and sighed and Kara slipped her arm around her friend’s shoulders and shifted closer.

            After a few more moments of silence, she asked, “Is everything alright?”

            Lena didn’t reply right away, but eventually she sighed again and said softly, “No.  Maybe.  No.  There are things about my family that aren’t, things my father and mother have done, people they’ve brought here and things they’re trying to do, and it’s not right and I don’t know how to fix it.”

            Kara hugged her tighter.  “What can I do to help you?”

            “I don’t know if you _can_ help,” her voice wavered slightly.

            “Hey,” she shook Lena gently, “Federal Marshal here, remember?  It’s part of my job to fix things.  I’m sure whatever it is, my sister and I can do something about it, especially if people are breaking the law.”

            “I don’t want you to get hurt,” Lena whispered, dark hair sliding over her face like a black waterfall in the moonlight.

            Kara reached up and brushed Lena’s hair back behind her ear before she leaned in and softly kissed her temple.  “I promise you, my sister would kill me if I got as much as a scratch.”  She hopped down off the fence and held her hands out to Lena, who slipped her own into them and allowed herself to be tugged gently to the ground to end up standing in the circle of Kara’s arms.

            “I’ll be careful, I promise.  Now, tell me what’s been going on so we can fix it,” she stated firmly, though she felt like her insides were liquid fire as she held the slim, dark-haired girl in her arms, her beautiful Raven.

 

* * *

 

            The smithy door swings open, a soot-stained Winn squinting out into the bright sunlight for a moment before he recognizes her and turns to shout back into the darkened building for Lena.  Less than a minute later Lena rushes into Kara’s arms as they share their accustomed greeting and she leads Kara back to her workspace, talking excitedly about her latest invention.  All Kara can feel is Lena’s hand in her own and the rapid beating of her heart.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just one or two more flashbacks, i swear


End file.
